Wheaton Aston 10K
27/12/09
Thirty-six Harriers turned out on a crisp bright day, with the recent snow rained away, but with several icy patches on the road. An excellent pb run by Russell Barron saw him take 4th place behind race winner Ross Jones of W&B AC who ran it in 33.25. 391 finished the race. Sally Gray was first Harrier lady and 3rd lady overall in 33rd place also in a pb time. There were no fewer than 12 pb’s for Harriers. Tom, Steve and Mike soon after the start.
Another eight Harriers ran in the fun run, six of which were Juniors and the other two mothers of the Juniors. Nathan Sabin was only 12 secs behind the race winner Alex Walker of Bromsgrove School. 84 finished the run.
Edward Simpson enjoying his run with Mum.
Majorca Marathon
13/12/09
Calvia Majorca Marathon Having decided to take a well earned early winter holiday, my wife was persuaded to leave the cold winter behind so we jetted of to Majorca as a family for a long weekend. It did help that it was her birthday so incorporating a marathon in the journey was ideal for me. The marathon itself was a little disorganised on the registration front, however as a running event the policing and marshalling could not be faulted. The race started near to the new sports track/football stadium in Magaluf and then headed towards Calvia, moving next to Santa Ponsa, before returning to Magaluf. It was a two lap affair with the half marathon obviously only doing one lap. The second lap was a very lonely time having only seen 10 other runners in 13 miles but at least it was not over crowded like London can be. Santa Ponsa had an outing for a santa-clause get together who were very loud, clapping and cheering but it was a nice break from the lonely miles. The weather was cool a 15 degrees, but it rained the whole race. If you are looking for a p.b. course this is it, no hills to speak of and no twisty bits and plenty of space to run your own race. A little expensive if you enter late but enter early and the price is ok, you also got a nice bright orange decent running top in the goodie bag. The finish was a 300m lap of the track in front of an enthusiastic crowd , all told a nice weekend away and with a 3.12 p.b most enjoyable. Give it a thought. Thanks to Keith Skelton for the report and congrats. on the PB – very hard to do without company.
FULL RESULTS NOW PUBLISHED: KEITH WAS 24TH OVERALL AND 4TH MV40 FINISHING IN A REAL TIME OF 3-12-54. 127 FINISHED. WELL DONE KEITH
Newcastle Dales Dash 10k
06/12/09
Chris Ross ran very strongly after his hard cross-country run the previous day in the Birmingham League and John Greatholder continues to run well – it must have been a bionic rebuild of his ankle. And Tom & Denise Rogers seem to like running the tough courses – here they are on the penultimate climb of the course!
Cheddleton 10k
28/11/09
A field of 454 enjoyed the highs and lows (3 times) of this race that never seems to quite appeal to many Harriers – in spite of it being local. Is this because it’s run on a Saturday? The race was won by Mark Dalkins of Bourne Sports(?) in 31:45.
Only 3 Harriers ran:
Chris Owen who was 136th in 46:04
Fred Chidlow who was 215th in 49:55
Dave Trevor who was 421st in 66:58
Wrekin Wrecker
22/11/09
A small field of 167 runners was lead home by Steve Cale of Shrewsbury AC in 59:30, almost 6 minutes ahead of the 2nd place runner. Our own Russell Barron finished 7th in 70:42 and Steve Cartlidge finished 103rd in 93:30. Russell shows how bad the “wrecker” hill is. But there is some level ground to enjoy, thankfully says Steve. Thanks to Brian Smith of D&K club for the photo’s. See his photo site for more races. Here’s Russell’s own account of the race: “The Wrekin Wrecker sounds quite tough at the best of times, but add the cold, rain and fog and you know it’s going to be a good day for fell racing. The race involved going up and down the Wrekin 3 times. After a steady start on the 1st climb and a very difficult 1st decent, then came along the 2nd climb up the hill and this was a killer. It was a steady walk up the side and I was struggling to walk by the time we reached the top. I lost a few places on this climb but trudged on. By the time we got to the third climb the weather had cleared and it was quite an enjoyable run. I managed to finish 7th in a time of 1hr 10mins and the best bit was that everyone got a bottle of beer at the finish.” >>> and the slippery mud no doubt added to the challenge.
Trackless 10
15/11/09
Suicide 6ml
15/11/09
Not content with the three shallow stream crossings at Stafford Common on Saturday, Russell & Keith fancied going deeper and deeper into the wet !!! Seven Harriers survived the Suicide attempt: – I BELIEVE IT WAS JILL ROSS WHO RAN IN PLACE OF LISA PERCOX Congratulations again to Russell for a great run only the day after a strong run on Stafford Common. Keith and Chris were also strong (or foolhardy) enough to run the day after their cross-country runs. The race was won in 35min10secs by Martin Williams of Tipton Harriers and 670 finished. . . . Sally says “It’s not THAT bad” Thanks to Jane Bisiker for the photo’s. She says it’s a definite MUST for all Harriers next year – too enjoyable to miss.
Auckland (NZ) Half Marathon
01/11/09
Just thought I’d say hi and let you know how I got on in the Auckland half marathon yesterday. The race was a hilly one, on a sunny morning, but really enjoyed running over the harbour bridge and looking back over to the city. As usual I went off like a maniac but finished in a time of 1.43.13 so was really pleased and happy. The first male marathon runner finished in a time of 2.31.46 and the first female in a time of 2.49.55. For the half marathon the first male finished in a time of 1.06.19 and the first female in a time of 1.15.59. Pass on my regards to all the harriers and I hope everyone’s well.
Kind regards, Lucy Earnshaw
Flying Fox 10ml
01/11/09
25 Harriers tackled this lumpy 10 miles, on a very windy day, with plenty of water for runners to get their feet wet from over night rain. 195 finishers
Dublin Marathon
26/10/09
A party of 11 travelled to Dublin by train and ferry on Saturday to enjoy a long weekend of Guinness and running. Actually only three of those traveling were Harriers who had entered the 30th Anniversary Dublin Marathon to be run on (Eire’s) Bank Holiday Monday, but the rest all took part in the Sunday morning “Breakfast” run – all of 1.8mls!
The 3 harriers that ran the full marathon were (with chip times):
Mark Bentley finished 1823 overall in 3:35:22
Dave Preece finished 8356 overall in 5:01:31
Kim Preece finished 8387 overall in 5:01:31
10,436 are listed as finishing – the slowest time being 8:13:24. Garret Doherty, who ran the 26.2 mile race backwards, finished in 5.28.33. The race was won by an Ethiopian in 2:09:12, with a Russian 2nd, Ukrainians 6th & 8th and 9 Kenyans in the first 20 runners home. The group wot went !
Halloween Hellraiser 8ml M/T
25/10/09
Dave Mansbridge, Telford AC won the race in 0:55:31 and Alison Sedman, Belle Vue Racers, was the first women home in 1:06:50, There were 138 finishers which was a larger uptake than last year, 98 finishes in 2008. It was a great race, very well marshalled with a mix of grass fields, grave yard and a field of standing corn, along with a little on road as well. Regards, Denise
Snowdonia Marathon
24/10/09
Bob Dredge appears to have been the only Harrier to run the event this year, finishing 417th (of 1,325 finishers) in a time of 3hrs 58:30 chip time. He was 13th MV55+. The race was won in 2:46:56 by Julian Macdonald of Chester Tri Club and the 1st Lady home was Shan Roberts of Ingli Runners finishing in 3:17:00
4th Aviemore half marathon
18/10/09
992 runners finished this year’s half marathon, run on paths and trails at the foot of the Cairngorm Mountains in the Central Highlands of Scotland. The race was won by Tommy Lawrence of Carnegie Harriers in 1:15:15. Peter Sarson finished in 41st place in a time of 1:26:26 and was 1st MV60+ home. Graham Williams finished in 356th place in 1:50:22 The view from the course at about 5miles
20th Bells of Pattingham Run
18/10/09
744 runners completed this years race, won by Daniel Beier of Tipton Harriers in 39:58 Thirteen Harriers raced: Congratulations to all those – particularly Russell Barron and David Clarke who are recently joined members.
With thanks to Bryan Smith of D&K. MORE PHOTOS The start lineup – with Russell right in the middle. This year’s Horse Brass as awarded to all finishers.
FLEET 10k
18/10/09
A saturday night social engagement with 3 mates (i think you get the picture!) saw my first race as an affiliated Harrier in sleepy Fleet. Crisp autumn weather greeted us for this 2 lap race round Fleet starting from the town centre. A fairly flat course with a coupe of gentle inclines saw me last out of our group at halfway but the famous Tompkins “late Surge” saw this improve to 2nd in 54.09 – a PB by 3 minutes. Plenty of crowd support made this a nice Sunday outing finished off with a good old Sunday roast. Tony Tompkins
Cardiff Half Marathon
18/10/09
Jackie Allen and Sharron Hawkins travelled down to Cardiff to run this popular race. Jackie finished 3,555th in 1:52:59, whilst Sharron finished in 5,771st place in 2:05:50. The race was won in 1:05:48 by Simon Lawson, while the 1st Lady home was Genet Measso in 1:15:01 8766 finished the race. VERY WELL DONE JACKIE & SHARRON !
Anglesey marathon
18/10/09
If you are looking for a Marathon which is well organised, informal and has a relaxed atmosphere, take a look at the Anglesey Marathon . This year it took place on 20th September 2009, a beautiful sunny day. There were approximately 320 runners taking part in the full marathon but there was also a half marathon, 10K, 5K and even children’s races. The marathon was chip timed (It only took 10 seconds to pass the starting mat!), and there were 11 water stations, 4 sponge stations plus a free bowl of stew when you finished. The route itself was a bit of a mixed bag. The first half was best described as undulating with a few mild hills giving you a false sense of security. The second half was predominantly a steady, gentle climb but from 21 miles it became a constant hill making the finish the most rewarding sight. The last 5 miles also became a bit hazardous in places with fast vehicles on open roads. There’s not great crowd support in terms of numbers but the locals are friendly and welcoming as you pass through villages. It was a late decision to sign up for this race so no great build up and no chance of injury through over training! We were pleased with completing the Marathon in 4hr 15mins and would recommend the race to other Harriers. Bed and Breakfast available locally – we booked ours just 2 weeks before the race. Lisa Percox and Steve Cartlidge
Congleton Half marathon
11/10/09
Birmingham Half marathon
11/10/09
Drizzly day (nice conditions for a run). The race was started by Kellie Holmes. Around 12,000 runners competed in this race which was mainly flat apart from one hill around 1 mile long. The 1st few miles was very congested through the narrow streets but the spectators were out in force giving encouragement from start to finish. A decent goody bag was given to all runners at the end. Apart from Rob and I, we only saw one other Harrier. My time was 1hr 44:35 Robs 1hr 48:18 Tim Hough and the other Harrier was Keith Faint – who finished in 1:43:58
Leicester Half marathon
11/10/09
Two half marathon virgins in Carl Spears and Dave Banner joined Tracey Kenny in what was the Leicester Half . Perfect weather and a well organized and well marshalled event. Flattish course with lovely scenery . Excellent support from Leicester public with lots of shouts for Stafford which was nice . Would definitely recommend for next year for all Harriers and at least we all finished before Mr Potato Head , The Genie and the guy with a washing machine strapped to his back (Help for Heroes) Well Done . THANKS TO DAVE FOR THIS REPORT
Carl Spears finished 860th from 1646 finishers in 1hr 59:13 (1:56:27 CHIP TIME) Dave Banner finished 898th in 2 hrs 00:27 (1:57:42 CHIP TIME)
Tracey Kenny finished 1210th in 2hrs 11:30 (2:08:43 CHIP TIME)
The race was won by Wojciech Gajny of Notts AC in 1:14:40
Badger Bite 6km M/T
04/10/09
What a loverly 6k off road course. The weather was perfect and the organisers were expecting records to be broken and they were. Only two harriers entered ,chris owen 29.26 and nigle addison 32.19. Pity it was the same weekend as cross country. First male was paul ward (wrekin rr) in 20.25 taking 55s off the course record , first female was deborah walters (birchfield harriers) in 22.12 taking nearly 4min off the female record! 264 ran Chris Owen .
Here’s Nigel on the trail
Oldbury Power Station 10
04/10/09
Chris Hollinshead made his annual trip down to Thornbury, near Bristol to run a classic flat 10 miler. In what were excellent conditions (very warm and sunny), Chris struggled badly to maintain a fluent rhythm after a recent virus but was still able to secure 4th position overall in 56.24 minutes. Three weeks ago on the 13th September Chris participated in the Nuneaton 10 miler that also included the Midland Masters Championships. On an undulating course, Chris finished second in the main race and second in the Midland Masters in 56 minutes.
PUMA Coniston Trail Race
03/10/09
The PUMA Coniston Trail Race is a 15km course through some of the most dramatic mountain scenery in the Lake District. Starting and finishing at John Ruskin School in Coniston village, the 15km circuit along well marked and marshalled footpaths and bridleways takes in panoramic views of Lake Coniston and the surrounding peaks of the Old Man, Swirl How, Wetherlam and Dow Crags. Tom Hobbins and his partner Lydia Atkins took a trip up to Cumbria, foregoing the pleasures of Newcastle Lyme Valley cross-country, to enjoy the race – though apparently had to cope with incredibly windy conditions. 470 runners took part and Tom finished 27th in 1:07:24, closely followed by Lydia in 1:44:11, finishing 421st.
